This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Electrical activity plays an important role in regulating the growth and development of the nervous system. For example, ongoing electrical activity plays an important role in the regulation of neuronal survival, axon outgrowth, neurotransmitter expression, and electrical differentiation of developing neurons. This proposal is designed to test the role of electrical activity in regulating gene expression in lumbar motoneurons. Inhibition of electrical activity will be performed by expression of the inward rectifier potassium channel Kir2.1. Changes in gene expression will be assessed using the Affymetrix GeneChip Chicken Genome Array